Steambot Chronicles

It begins with an amnesiac hero named Vanilla washed up on a beach, but from this clichéd beginning a unique experience rolls out. Or rather trots. Though you can also travel by foot, Steambot replaces cars or horses with Trotmobiles, two-legged, eminently pimp-able mech suits that use Katamari-style dual-analogue controls and can both march about and do battle. Though there’s a branching storyline, depending on whether you play nice or not, it’s sandbox-style game play is open-ended enough to keep players plenty busy with side-quests. You can just as easily join a band of bandits (Killer Elephants) as join a rock band (Garland Globetrotters) and when it comes to making money, you can trade stocks, farm food or bust out your harmonica to busk on street corners. This quaint and quirky Japanese role-playing game is essentially a kindler, gentler Grand Theft Auto for the anime set. In fact, they’ve even included a hilarious "hot cocoa” reference when you’re out on a date.